Kamloops Blazers forward Jordan DePapeIt’s always tough when bad things happen to good people. When that person is Jordan DePape, fate seems particularly cruel.

On Saturday night, after a shootout victory over the Prince George Cougars, the 20-year-old walked into the Kamloops Blazers dressing room and told his teammates his Western Hockey League career was over. His damaged right shoulder needs surgery and rehab.

“It was tough,” said DePape on Monday. “We had two really big games this weekend and I didn’t want to let them know before, because it would be a distraction to the team. I didn’t think that was fair.”

Instead, DePape - one of the most well-liked players on the team - kept his heartbreaking news a secret until after the game. He had tried to hold his emotions in check as best as possible, but when head coach Guy Charron began to speak, the reality hit home.

“It instantly brought tears to my eyes,” said DePape, who spent four seasons with the Blazers. “My teammates knew that was it for me this season. I had to

Read More »from DePape leaves his heart in Kamloops

When it comes to goaltending, Oscar Dansk is serious. But he doesn’t take himself too seriously. Take his Twitter account. The No. 1 goaltender for the Erie Otters routinely makes puns with his surname. Asked after a recent game to provide a reporter with a headline for a story profiling him, Dansk shows off his playful side.

“Learn how to Dansk!” he said, then adding later, “I’m a good Dansker, but I’m not a good dancer, so I’ll tell you that.” Erie Otters goaltender Oscar Dansk set to face a shot in an OHL game. (Photo by Claus Andersen/Getty Images)

Once he’s in the crease, though, the puns stop and the puck-stopping takes precedence. The 18-year-old’s talent and diligence have caught the attention of both the Otters and the Columbus Blue Jackets, who made Dansk a second-round pick in June’s NHL entry draft.

“He’s an extremely diligent worker,” said Ian Clark, the Blue Jackets’ goaltending coach. “At his age, he has a very special mental skills package. … Oscar has an extremely calm, even-keeled manner, so he has – given his age – a real mature mental skill set for a goaltender, Read More »from So you think you can Dansk?

After joining the OHL in 1998, the Brampton Battalion are poised for a move to North Bay. (OHL Images)The last time I spoke with Al McDonald, he was desperately trying to save his local hockey team.

At the time, the North Bay Centennials were on the verge of being sold and shipped off to Saginaw, Mich. The community had been rallying – people donating whatever money they could afford – in order to raise the $3 million needed to save their Ontario Hockey League team.

"We've always taken the stance that it's in the best interests of the OHL to keep the team in Ontario, and more importantly, to keep the team in Northern Ontario," said McDonald, the then-deputy mayor of North Bay.

Despite selling 2,700 season tickets, the drive fell short and the team moved.

That was almost 10 years ago.

And while the OHL might have forgotten about the North Bay, the people there never forgot about major junior hockey.

“Over the past 10 years, it’s been amazing how many people remembered (the Centennials),” said McDonald, who led the “Save the Cents” campaign in 2002. “I’d be stopped in Read More »from North Bay's wait for OHL is almost over

Despite being on life support, the proposed union for junior hockey players announced they will continue.

On Friday, now identifying himself as CHLPA founder, Glenn Gumbley took to Twitter to hold a question-and-answer session. During the exchange he said the proposed union was not dead, saying: “We intend to pass the baton over to an established enterprise so that they can move forward successfully.”

At this point, however, it’s unclear how many people are left to make that happen.

Earlier in the day two more law firms who had been working with the group rescinded their services. In addition, the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League said they were notified by the Nova Scotia Labor Board that a bid to have the Cape Breton Screaming Eagles take part in a certification bid was nixed when the union withdrew its application.

When the proposed union first came to light in August, questions surrounded their group – most notably: Who was behind it? Instead of transparency, the CHLPA Read More »from CHLPA to 'pass the baton'

CHLPA executive director Georges Laraque.

Ed note: After this story was published Georges Laraque announced he was stepping down as the executive director of the CHLPA.

When the proposed Canadian Hockey League Players’ Association started, the message they came with was simple: We aren’t trying to line our pockets, this is about the players.

This is about a better education.

This is about a better future for the 1,400 playing in North America’s top junior league.

Since August, the CHLPA has enveloped itself in relative anonymity, save a few lawyers, executive director Georges Laraque – the face of the organization – and spokesperson Derek Clarke, the voice and driving force representing the proposed union.

Now, as it turns out, the Canadian Hockey League wanted to have that veil of secrecy lifted, so they hired a private investigator to help them.

Clarke was at the forefront of that investigation, because there were questions raised about his identity.

“We started to get concerned based on the information Read More »from CHLPA a tale of multiple identities?

Medicine Hat Tigers forward Rocky Dundas. Photo: Medicine Hat News ArchivesOver the years, father and son have shared many heart-to-heart conversations about hockey. They have discussed the commitment, hard work, discipline and long hours necessary to make it to the next level.

Now, with his son old enough, the father imparted his wisdom on a subject he was all too familiar with: fighting.

As a former pro hockey player, Rocky Dundas had seen his share of fisticuffs. So, when the Toronto Maple Leafs made it clear that if he wanted to stay in the NHL it would be as a full-time enforcer, Dundas was forced to make a tough decision.

Despite having two years left on his contract, he quit pro hockey for good.

“I didn’t want to do that anymore,” said Dundas, who left the NHL after playing five games with the Leafs during the 1989-90 season. “I still had a couple of years left on my contract, but I had an internal choice to make. It was an easy choice in the sense that I didn’t want to fight any more.”

On a recent Sunday afternoon in Brampton, Dundas watchedRead More »from Dad's the main advisor in department of Justice

Calgary Flames prospect Patrick Sieloff. Patrick Sieloff could sense it coming the moment the puck was fired around the boards in the Erie Otters zone. He saw Otters forward Hayden Hodgson try to corral the puck just inside the blueline. He saw an opportunity.

“If the puck’s getting rimmed up the boards, I know that if it’s behind him he’s going to have to look down eventually or he’s going to let it go by him and we’re going to get it,” said Sieloff. “So, either way the puck’s staying in or he’s going to get hit.”

In the split second when Hodgson dropped his head, Sieloff got it – the green light to lower the boom. The check was just one of many thunderous hits the 18-year-old blueliner for the Windsor Spitfires has thrown over the course of his young career. He’s only just started to build his reputation as one of the Ontario Hockey League’s most physical players.

Even though he’s only played 13 OHL games, Sieloff’s physicality has been a revelation in a league that has become so proactive in targeting head-shots – and

Read More »from Spitfires hit man Sieloff a future Flames thrower

Saginaw Spirit general manager Jim PaliafitoHe lived the Jerry Maguire Hollywood life of an NFL agent. For some 20 years he represented players who now have their visages enshrined in the Pro Football Hall of Fame.

He calls Kentucky home, has owned thoroughbreds and even had a horse run in the prestigious Kentucky Oaks.

Today, however, Jim Paliafito is just another general manager in the Ontario Hockey League.

On a Sunday afternoon in mid-October, Palafito is sitting inside the Powerade Centre in Brampton, Ont., intently watching his Saginaw Spirit from the press box. Dressed in dark pants, white shirt and maroon tie, Paliafito is a commanding physical presence though his personality is far more understated. Outside of the occasional fist hitting the counter after goals by the hometown Battalion, there’s nothing boisterous or eye-catching that makes Paliafito stand out.

That changes once you hear the 53-year-old's journey to his current lot in life.

“It’s like that commercial with the ‘Most Interesting Man in the Read More »from The most interesting man in junior hockey